Galway City Council figures reveal city election candidates’ expenses

Galway Advertiser, Thu, Sep 04, 2014

Expenses ranging from more that €9,000 to under €1,000 were incurred by local election candidates across Galway city’s three wards in May’s local elections. However one candidate’s campaign cost him only €39.

Almost all candidates stumped up the majority of the funds for their election campaigns from their own resources, with the rest being made by donations from friends, supporters, and party organisations. The figures were revealed on Wednesday by the Galway City Council which published the figures on its website for the 38 candidates who stood in May’s local elections in the city.

Under Section 13 of the Local Elections (Disclosure of Donations and Expenditure ) Act 1999, election candidates must declare their donations and election expenses. Expenses included advertising, posters, election material, stationary, and in some cases money for canvassers.

The breakdown for Galway City East is: Noel Larkin (Independent ), with total expenses of €6,102, with all funds coming from the candidate’s own resources; Monica Coughlan (Labour ), €5,360, with €2,625 from her own resources and the rest being made up of Labour, SIPTU, and Labour Women donations; Nuala Nolan (Labour ), €5,191, including donations totalling €695.

Expenses for Michael J Crowe (Fianna Fáil ) totalled €5,069. Of this €3,956 came from his own resources, with €1,112 from local Fianna Fáil members. Alan Cheevers (Fianna Fáil ) was €2,198, of which €1,522 came from donations.

Fine Gael candidates were a mixture of own resources and donations from Galway Fine Gael. John Walsh’s expenses €2,249, which includes a donation of €672 from Galway FG; Margo Kelly was €2,117, with €747 from Galway FG. The exception was John Rabbitte whose expenses of €4,564 came from his own resources.

Other candidates whose funds came from their own resources were Independents Declan McDonnell (€5,044 ) and Terry O’Flaherty (€4,112 ) and Máiréad Farrell (Sinn Féin ) at €1,545.

In Galway City Central, candidates who funded their campaigns from their own resources were Labour’s Billy Cameron (€5,432 ), Fine Gael’s Pádraig Conneely (€5,606 ), and Sinn Féin’s Anna Marley (€2,524 ), who described ‘own resources’ as “fundraising and functions” in the council documentation. Meanwhile Seamus Sheridan’s campaign was entirely funded by the Green Party, with the total expenses coming to €2,595.

For the remaining candidates, their campaigns were funded by a mixture of their own resources along with donations. Fianna Fáil’s Ollie Crowe’s campaign came to €2,445 with €1,112 of that coming from the local FF organisation. His running mate Nicola Deacy had expenses of €1,840.

The remaining figures were Kiran Emrich (People Before Profit Alliance ), €698 with €198 of that coming from “other resources”’; Mike Cubbard (Independent ), €1,400 with €900 of that coming from a fundraiser; Colette Connolly (Labour ), €2,730 with €480 coming from “other resources”; Frank Fahy (Fine Gael ), €3,836 with €732 of that from Galway FG; Mike Geraghty (Independent ) €1,623, with €795 of that from “other resources”; and John McDonagh (Labour ), €4,370 of which €1,500 came from a race night and Labour Party BBQ.

Of the rest, the figures were David Burke (Fianna Fáil ), €5,276 with €1,043 of that from FF Galway West CDC; Cathal Ó Conchúir (Sinn Féin ), €1,542 with €500 of that coming from a fundraising quiz; Pearce Flannery (Fine Gael ), €6,790, with €275 from “other resources”; Donal Lyons (Independent ), €6,020 with €50 of that from “other resources”; and Michelle Murphy (Fine Gael ), €4,095, with €652 of that from Galway FG.

The three Anti-Austerity Alliance candidates had expenses covered through “other resources” the council’s documentation shows. Their expenses totalled €973 (Conor Burke, Galway City East ), €935, (Seán Byrne, Galway City Central ), and €973 (Tommy Houlihan, Galway City West ).

The candidate with the smallest expenses for his campaign was Independent Marc Anderson in Galway City West whose expenses came to only €39.36 on election posters.